Can someone tell my why Wayne Bennet persists with David Stagg at five-eighth in the absence of the great Darren Lockyer? No offence to Stagg, who I think is a good player, but I don’t think he is up to that position in the top grade.

A solution stares Benny in the face surely. We have two quality hookers in the team and I feel Michael Ennis could quite easily slip back to a pivot type role which will let PJ Marsh into a starting dummy half role. Marsh is as fit as a fiddle and could easily play the whole game away while Ennis can take a break from play when Wallace steps in to take the attack the other way. Its not perfect by any means but Stagg isn’t really working and neither did Carroll.

Another area of concern for me was the Broncos commitment for what seemed like a full 20 minutes before and after halftime. I found myself screaming at the TV for them to chase kicks, back up in defence and for the front rowers to make more than 1 hit up in a set of six.

Ashton ‘Pretty Boy’ Simms, in my opinion, will need a miracle training performance to even make the team next game. He has become so scared of knocking on that he has gone missing in the hit up department with only 8 hit ups and 14 tackles for the whole game. An unattended punching bag left in the middle of the field would achieve more than this!!!

As much as I disliked him for a few years Hodges was sorely missed, his normal commitment in defence and bump’n’run type attack were not taken up by teamates to any real extent. Darius Boyd did try but he needs to think about position play a little more, especially during high kicks near the line. If you watch the replay you will see what I mean.

I know the Broncs were down a few key players but I was disappointed in the performance and not because of a result. In this instance the Broncos could not count themselves unlucky in any respect. They played badly and lost accordingly.

Manly’s Jamie Lyon has never lived up to the hype but he seemed to be involved at several key points in the game and played well. The Beaver, a personal favourite of mine continues to plug away. I can’t see him stopping before the rapture…. Somebody must have inserted an energiser battery up his clacker or something!!